The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of April 25, 2024

Maharaja of Rewa in Prayer

Maharaja of Rewa in Prayer

1886
(Indian, 1844–1905)
India
albumen print
Image: 20 x 27.2 cm (7 7/8 x 10 11/16 in.); Paper: 20 x 27.2 cm (7 7/8 x 10 11/16 in.)
Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund 2016.266.21
Location: not on view

Description

Performing religious devotions was part of a maharaja’s duty to protect his kingdom. Praying before an altar, the maharaja fingers prayer beads and sits opposite a mirror, an auspicious object in Hindu worship. The lines painted on the men’s foreheads indicatethat they are devotees of the Hindu god Vishnu. This group portrait demonstrates three ways rulers serve the state: by being a military commander, a worldly scholar, and, in this image, an observant Hindu.
  • 1887 or 1888
    Studio of Raja Deen Dayal, sold to commissioner (identity unknown)
    1970s–2015
    Walter Clode [1929–2022], Pershore, England, sold or consigned to Prahlad Bubbar Indian and Islamic Art, London, England
    2015–16
    (Prahlad Bubbar Indian and Islamic Art, London, England), sold to The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
    December 5, 2016–
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • Raja Deen Dayal: The King of Indian Photographers. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (April 23, 2023-February 4, 2024).
  • {{cite web|title=Maharaja of Rewa in Prayer|url=false|author=Raja Deen Dayal|year=1886|access-date=25 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2016.266.21